London restaurants put the environment on the menu
A unique new organisation has been launched to promote green issues among London restaurants. Ethical Eats is a network of the capital's eateries brought together by sustainable food experts London Food Link to champion the ethical approach to catering.
At its first meeting, representatives of restaurants including Leon, Moshi Moshi and Sausage & Mash Café met with Greenpeace, the Marine Stewardship Council and other environmentalists to discuss the slippery issue of sustainable fish.
Allegra McEvedy, co-owner and chef of the Leon chain of healthy fast food restaurants, said, “It's amazing how little support there has been until now for chefs and restaurateurs who care about the environment. I cannot stress what a difference Ethical Eats will make by helping us and other like-minded businesses get the right information and advice and meet the right people – in short, by just being there to help. Having this as a resource to draw on is an all-round good thing for any caterers with a conscience.”
Charlotte Jarman of London Food Link added, “We are hugely encouraged to see restaurant owners take the environment seriously. As far as we know this is the first attempt to unite caterers to take action on these vital issues. We're delighted with the passion and commitment of the restaurateurs involved.”
The Ethical Eats initiative follows on from London Food Link's research into restaurants, which will soon be published in the One Planet Dining report. The network will meet several times each year to discuss issues affecting the restaurant trade such as ethical sourcing of ingredients, dealing responsibly with waste and putting sustainability at the heart of catering training. Farm visits and other educational trips will also be organised.
The next meeting of the network will be a 'meet the producer' event on 5th June, to take place during London Sustainability Weeks, at which restaurant owners and chefs will be given the opportunity to see and taste seasonal produce from local suppliers.
Restaurants and other catering businesses interested in joining the network should contact Charlotte Jarman on 0203 5596 777 or charlotte@sustainweb.org.
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For further information please contact Charlotte Jarman on 0203 5596 777 or 07946 634 272 or charlotte@sustainweb.org.
Notes to editor:
- London Food Link is a membership organisation that works towards the development of a more sustainable food system for London. For more information see http://www.londonfoodlink.org/.
- London Food Link is part of Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming. Sustain advocates food and agriculture policies and practices that enhance the health and welfare of people and animals, improve the working and living environment, promote equity and enrich society and culture.
- The first meeting of Ethical Eats took place in the week that the Marine Conservation Society published its latest Supermarket League Table, scoring supermarkets on the sustainability of their fish supply. See http://www.fishonline.org/ for details.
Published Tuesday 10 April 2007
London Food Link: London Food Link brings together community food enterprises and projects that are working to make good food accessible to everyone in London to help create a healthy, sustainable and ethical food system for all.
